Surfboard nose bumper



March 26, 1968 w JOYCE SURFBOARD NOSE BUMPER Filed Aug. 22. 1967 'INVENTOR. WILLIAM F! JOYCE FIG.

wax-a22 ATTORNEYS United States Patent Ofifice 3,374,495- Patented Mar. 26, 1968 3,374,495 SURFBOARD NOSE BUMPER William P. Joyce, 18702 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu, Calif. 90265 Filed Aug. 22, 1967, Ser. No. 662,400 3 Claims. (Cl. 9-310) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This disclosure relates to a guard or protecting sheath for the nose portion of a surfboard in the form of an integrally molded plastic member defining a curved channel receivable over the front curved nose portion of the surfboard.

This invention relates generally to surfing and more particularly to a novel protective member for the nose portion of a surfboard.

In sport surfing, the most vulnerable part of the surfboard with' respect to abrasion and possible destruction is the curved front nose portion. For example, the nose of the surfboard is subject to damage from head on collisions with debris in the ocean or possibly with other surfers. Further, should the nose dig into the water such that the surfboard is upended, the nose itself will often scrape against sand or rocks on the bottom of the ocean resulting in damage. In other instances, surfers often jam the nose portions of their surfboards into the sand to hold them in a standing position when not in use.

With presently known protective devices such as bumpers employed for boats and the like, it would not be feasible to attempt to protect the nose portion of a surfboard. Not only would the added bulk of the bumper interfere with the hydrodynamics of the board, but the weight distribution of the board would be altered. Further, the overall appearance of the board could well become unesthetic.

With the foregoing considerations in mind, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a novel nose bumper adapted for surfboards wherein the nose portion of the surfboard will be adequately protected against the various abrasive actions or other damage described above.

More particularly, it is an object to provide a nose bumper for protecting the curved front nose portion of a surfboard which will not alter the general hydrodynamic lines of the board to any appreciable extent.

Another object is to provide a nose bumper which will not alter appreciably the weight distribution of the board.

Still other objects of this invention are to provide a novel nose bumper for a surfboard which will not detract from its esthetic appearance; which may very easily be installed by the surfer himself without the need of special tools; which is so designed as to be adaptable to a large number of different shaped surfboards; and, which is extremely economical to manufacture.

Briefly, these and other objects and advantages of this invention are attained by providing an integrally molded plastic sheath of thin material defining a curved channel receivable over the front curved nose portion of the surfboard. The flexibility of the particular material employed for the sheath is such that it may readily be adapted to several different shapes and sizes of surfboards. The sheath itself is readily secured to the board by a special glue so that no mechanical hardware or the like is necessary for securing the sheath in place. Because of the particular construction involved, there is not provided any appreciable change in the weight distribution of the board or in its hydrodynamic characteristics or esthetic appearance.

A better understanding of the invention will be had by now referring to a preferred embodiment thereof as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating the nose bumper of this invention in a position preparatory to inserting the same on the nose portion of a surfboard;

FIGURE 2 is a rear elevational view of the nose bumper looking in the direction of the arrow 2 of FIG- URE 1; and

FIGURE 3 is a cross-section taken in the direction of the arrows 3-3 of FIGURE 2.

Referring first to FIGURE 1, there is shown the front end portion of a surfboard 10 preparatory to receiving the nose bumper 11 of this invention.

As shown in FIGURES 1 to 3, the nose bumper 11 is in the form of an integrally molded plastic sheath defining a curved channel of general U-shape in crosssection, the arms of the U being defined by upper and lower walls 12 and 13 and the channel itself being designated by the arrow 14. The ends of the curved sheath structure are designated 15 and 16 and it will be noted that the width of the upper and lower channel walls 12 and 13 taper toward these ends such that the end portions of the channel 14 are open. This structure facilitates insertion of the sheath on the curved nose portion of the surfboard 10. a

The particular material of the sheath preferably constitutes polyethylene which is characterized by being somewhat flexible and having a memory to retain a given shape once distorted to such shape under elevated temperatures. Further, the use of polyethylene results in a very light, strong, and smooth member particularly useful for the particular application as described.

To increase the flexibility with respect to movement of the ends 15 and 16 towards and away from each other thereby varying the radius of curvature of the channel, there may be provided cut-outs such as small Vs in the upper and lower walls as indicated at 17 and 18 respectively to either side of the central portion of the member. Other shapes for the cut-outs could be used.

Normally, the arc through which the curvedsheath extends lies somewhere between 60 and 120 and normally would be defined by an arc of approximately such that if tangents were drawn to the outer ends 15 and 16 of the sheath, these tangents would intersect each other at a right angle.

The top wall 12 of the channel includes at the exact center portion of its arc, an indicating means such as a dimple or small button 19 which may be formed during the molding operation to clearly designate the exact center of the arc. The purpose for this indicator is to enable a person to center the sheath with respect to the longitudinal central axis of the surfboard 10, this centering being accomplished by assuring an alignment of the indicator 19 with the intersection of the surfboard axis with its curved nose 20.

With particular reference to FIGURES 2 and 3, it will be noted that the interior central portion of the channel includes at least one transversely extending rib 21 which constitutes an integral part of the molded sheath. In the particular illustration, three such ribs are shown; one at the exact center beneath the dimple or button 19 and the other two on either side thereof. These ribs lend a certain rigidity to the central nose portion of the bumper itself to provide added strength.

In operation, the curved sheath 11 of FIGURE 1 is sold in a package together with a suitable glue capable of adhering to polyethylene. In applying the nose bumper to the surfboard, the user will first remove all wax, dirt and residue from the nose area 20 of the board with any suitable cleaning fluid such as acetone. This nose portion is then wiped completely dry.

Thereafter, the bumper channel 14 is fitted to the nose portion20 of the board with the indicating dot or dimple 19 lined up at the dead center of the nose of the board. If the bumper does not fit flush, it may then be placed in boiling water until pliable. At this point, the bumper can be contour fitted to the nose of the board by rounding the edges inwardly.

After the bumper has cooled, it is again placed on the board and the profile of the bumper may be traced on the board with a pencil, In this respect, it is important that the central rib 21 be in touching engagement with the nose of the board.

The bumper is then removed and the glue or other adhesive provided with the bumper is applied to the outlined nose area on the board and to the internal portion of the channel 14. This application of the glue is indicated at 22 and 23, respectively, in FIGURE 1.

The glue should be permitted to dry to a tacky consistency. Normally this would take approximately minutes.

Thereafter, the bumper is then secured in position about the nose portion with the dimple 19 in proper alignment and the rib in the bumper touching the nose of the board. All surfaces are pressed together and by means of masking tape or any other suitable holding means, the bumper is retained in position and permitted to dry for at least 36 hours.

After the glue is dry and the bumper properly set, any excess residue of glue may be cleaned off with acetone. Any edge portions may be readily trimmed as desired. 7

Since the entire nose bumper constitutes an integrally molded plastic sheath, the same may be readily manufactured by suitable injection molding techniques and thus can be mass produced extremely economically.

From the foregoing, it will thus be evident that the present invention has provided a novel nose bumper wherein all of the various objects set forth heretofore are fully realized.

I claim:

1. A nose bum-per adapted to be manufactured and sold as a separate item and subsequently serve as an auxiliary exterior attachment to a surfboard, comprising: an integrally molded sheath defining a curved channel having a U-shape in transverse cross section receivable over the exterior front curved nose portion of said surfboard only to protect the same, said curved channel extending'over' an are greater than sixty degrees and less than one hundred and twenty degrees, and including integral reinforcing rib means extending transversely between the innermost portions of said U-shape in the central portion of the arc of said curved channel such that the upper and lower walls of said channel defining the arms of said U-shape' extend beyond said rib means for a distance substantially greater than the transverse extent of said rib means, said sheath including at its central portion an exterior, visible means indicatingthe center of the arc of said curved channel for alignment with the longitudinal axis of said surfboard when positioning .said sheath on said surfboard.

2. The subject matter of claim 1, in and lower walls of said channel defining the arms of said U-shape taper in width towards the ends of said sheath to facilitate fitting of said-channel around said exterior front curved nose portion of said surfboard.

3. The subject matter of claim 1, including cut-out V-. shaped portions in the walls of said channel to increase the flexibility of said sheath when moving the ends of said sheath to change its radius of curvature.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,608,000 Il/ 1926 Ranlett. v 2,184,791 12/1939 Broorne 9310 UXR 2,3 89,729 11/ 1945 Howland 9310 2,829,915 4/1958 Claveau 293 -63 XR 2,990,802 7/ 1961 Ong et a1. 3,110,066 11/1963 Ward et al. 3,123,373 3/1964 Antclilf 9-3 10 XR 3,308,493 3/1967 .Lambach 9310 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,035,216 4/1953 France.

901,112 7/1962 Great Britain.

395,774 7/1965 Switzerland.

FERGUS S. MIDDLETON, Primary Examiner.

MILTON BUCHLER, Examiner.

P. E. SAUBERER, Assistant Examiner.

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